Suspected Somali bomb kills at least 10

A suspected car bomb has killed at least 10 people at a police checkpoint next to a busy market in the Somali capital, Mogadishu.

Witnesses saw several bodies at the scene in the city's Waberi district, where shops and stalls were wrecked and ambulances raced away with casualties. Blood pooled on the ground.

The Somali Islamist group al Shabaab often carries out such attacks in the capital, although there was no immediate claim of responsibility by the group on Saturday.

"The whole market is ruined and people perished. The death toll is sure to rise," Colonel Abdikadir Farah, a police officer, said, adding that at least 10 people had been confirmed dead and a dozen more were wounded.

Somalia is still battling an Islamist insurgency while it seeks to rebuild after more than two decades of conflict and chaos that have left the nation in tatters.

It is holding a vote at polling centres across the country over several weeks for a new parliament. About 14,000 people representing Somalia's federal states have been chosen to pick the 275 parliamentarians.

The government, UN officials and international donors have said security issues prevented a broader vote. The parliamentary vote was due to end on November 30, after several delays, but an official said it was now likely to last until mid-December.